The present invention relates to methods and devices for treating skin lesions and, in particular, it concerns a tweezers type device and method for the application of cryogenic matter directly on a skin lesion while protecting the collateral skin tissue from being damaged by the cryogenic matter.
Skin lesions have typically been treated utilizing several different methods, including surgical methods requiring scalpels, electro-desiccation methods, and various cryogenic methods, including the use of liquid nitrogen. A number of problems are commonly associated with these methodologies, including excessive time requirements, excessive costs, damage to the surrounding tissue, unnecessary pain, requirement for anesthesia, medical complications, and the like.
Electro-desiccation methods typically pose a number of drawbacks such as excessive time requirements and possible hyper-trophic scarring occurring in the patient. These methods should not be used on patients who have pacemakers.
A number of problems may result from the use of scalpels for skin lesion removal, such as the occurrence of hyper-trophic scarring in some patients, the occurrence of bacterial skin infections, bleeding, and excessive time requirements to perform the surgical procedure.
It is known to treat skin lesions commonly referred to as skin tags by the use of cryogenic matter. The use of liquid nitrogen to remove skin lesions poses a number of problems such as the need for expensive storage, unnecessary pain, damage to the adjacent skin, evaporation of the liquid nitrogen material during storage, and possible hypo-pigmentation and hyper-trophic scarring. Another drawback of liquid nitrogen is the high expense of the delivery systems which spray the liquid nitrogen cryogenic material onto the skin and mucous membranes.
The use of cryogenic matter falls into two basic categories. In a first category the cryogenic matter is used to drastically reduce the temperature of the treatment device, such as the device disclosed, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,375,652.
In a second category, the cryogenic matter is applied directly to the lesion itself, such as is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,296,410 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,505. One problem that arises within the second category is damage to collateral skin tissue caused by the cryogenic matter.
There is therefore a need for a device and method for the application of cryogenic matter directly on a skin lesion while protecting the collateral skin tissue from being damaged by the cryogenic matter.